RIT's bench explodes in celebration during the final seconds of the 1983 championship game.RIT players carry coach Bruce Delventhal after winning the 1985 national championship.
In the fall of 1957, RIT student Jack Trickey founded the Monroe County Amateur Hockey (MCAHA) Association. A group of RIT students made up the majority of one of the teams. In 1958, the RIT Hockey Club was founded, and competed in the MCAHA until the league folded in 1960. The RIT hockey team continued to play against junior varsity and club teams. The RIT student council and athletic committee recommended that hockey be added to the athletic program, and men's hockey later became a varsity sport.[2] The 1962–63 season was their first major season, as coached by Jim Heffer. In 1982, under third-year coach Brian Mason, they had their first twenty-win season with 23 wins to only nine losses.[3] The team competed at the Division II and III level for several years. The Tigers won the NCAA Division II men's ice hockey tournament in 1983. In April 1984, Mason left the program to coach at Dartmouth. He was replaced by Bruce Delventhal. The 1985–86 team won 31 games and then won the NCAA Division III men's ice hockey tournament by a score of 5–1 over Bemidji State. While the Tigers made the Frozen Four four times from 1984 to 1989, they did not reach the D-III Tournament again until 1994 with Eric Hoffberg as coach. When he left after the 1999 season, he had taken the Tigers to the tournament five times and reached the Frozen Four twice. In 2004, it was announced that the Tigers would move up to the NCAA Division I level for the 2005–2006 season.[4]
NCAA Division I
In their first year (2005–2006) in the Atlantic Hockey Association, the Tigers went 6–22–2. In their second season, they won the regular-season title with 21 wins.. They were ineligible to compete in the playoffs until the 2007–2008 season. In the 2007–2008 season, the Tigers played in the Mariucci Classic in which they stunned the number-12-ranked Minnesota Golden Gophers by a score of 4–3.[5] However, they fell to number-14-ranked Boston College 6–0.[6] During the playoffs, they swept Holy Cross but were shut out in the first round of the AHA Tournament 5–0 by the Air Force Falcons, who were without their Hobey Baker finalist Eric Ehn.[7] In the 2008–2009 season, the Tigers played some of their best regular-season hockey (notably an 11-game win streak from December 6 to January 25). They met Holy Cross again in the playoffs and won the series 2–1 but fell in the AHA Tournament to the Mercyhurst Lakers 5–4 in overtime. Highlights of the game include Mercyhurst overcoming a 3–1 deficit and the Tigers tying the game with under a minute left. In the 2009–10 season, their most successful season to date, the Tigers made a historic run all the way to the 2010 NCAA Frozen Four, sweeping Connecticut in the first round and winning the AHA Tournament by beating the Canisius Golden Griffins as well as the Sacred Heart Pioneers to advance to the NCAA tournament as the conference's autobid. The Tigers stunned the Denver Pioneers 2–1 and then finished off the University of New Hampshire Wildcats 6–2 in the east regional in Albany, New York, where they advanced to the Frozen Four. The team's run came to an end in the national semifinals, where they fell to the University of Wisconsin Badgers, 8–1.[8]
In the 2010–2011 season, the Tigers played in the Maverick stampede but lost both their games against number-4-ranked St. Cloud State and the University of Nebraska–Omaha. The Tigers won yet another regular season title and made it all the way to the AHA championship game, where they fell to the Air Force Falcons by a score of 1–0. Air Force goaltender Jason Torf made 40 saves in the contest.[9] In the 2011–2012 season, the Tigers struggled early on, but bounced back in the second half of the season, eliminating the Bentley Falcons after falling behind 1–0 in the first round series of the Atlantic Hockey playoffs, but prevailing in their next two games. They advanced again to the AHA championship game where they eliminated Niagara in overtime but fell, yet again, to the Air Force Falcons, getting shut out 4–0.[10] The Tigers struggled over the next two seasons, as they finished 2012–2013 with a record of 15–18–5, their first losing record since joining Atlantic Hockey.[11] This was also the first time they were unable to advance to the Atlantic Hockey semifinals at Blue Cross Arena, as they defeated American International College in the first round, but were swept by the Niagara Purple Eagles in the second round, losing in overtime in the second game.[12] The following year (2013–2014), the Tigers played their final season at their home ice rink, Frank Ritter Memorial Ice Arena. The Tigers only won 6 out of 16 games at their home arena.[13] Although they struggled that season, the Tigers participated in the "Frozen Frontier," a 10-day hockey festival at Rochester's Frontier Field outdoor baseball stadium.[14] The Tigers took on their AHA rivals, the Niagara University Purple Eagles on December 14. The teams skated to a 2–2 tie in a snow storm and 16-degree temperatures.[15] In their final game at Ritter Arena, the Tigers defeated their long time AHA rival, the Canisius College Golden Griffins 3–1.[16] In the playoffs, the Tigers won the first game in overtime against Holy Cross before getting blown away in game two by a score of 5–1. In the deciding game, The Tigers led 2–0 but Holy Cross came from behind to tie the game in the second period, forcing overtime where they completed the comeback.[17]
The Tigers moved into the 4,300-seat Gene Polisseni Center for the 2014–15 season.[18] Their first season in the Polisseni Center saw the Tigers finish with a 20–15–5 overall record. They played in the Mariucci classic, losing both games against number-9-ranked Massachusetts–Lowell and number-8-ranked Minnesota. In the playoffs, they swept the Air Force Falcons in the second round after receiving a bye in the first round. The Tigers went on to defeat Canisius in the semifinals of the AHA Tournament by a score of 2–1 and the Meryhurst Lakers in the championship game by a score of 5–1 to win the Atlantic Hockey championship and advance to the NCAA Division I tournament for the second time in program history. The Tigers knocked off the Minnesota State Mavericks in the first round of the NCAA tournament 2–1, becoming the first No. 16 seed to defeat the top overall seed since the 16-team format was implemented in 2003.[19] There would be no repeat, however, of the 2009–2010 run to the Frozen Four as the Tigers fell to the University of Nebraska Omaha Mavericks in the following round by a score of 4–0, ending their playoff run.[20] In the 2015–16 season, the Tigers lost home ice in the first round to Mercyhurst as they were swept in their last two games of the regular season on home ice; however, the Tigers returned the favor in the postseason by sweeping the Lakers on the road. The Tigers once again were in the AHA tournament and faced the Air Force Falcons once again. The Tigers trailed 1–0 heading into the third and it would appear that they were headed to another shutout loss, but Andrew Miller scored with under 3 minutes left in the third to even the score. In overtime, the Tigers completed their comeback winning 2–1. The Tigers would then claim the Atlantic Hockey championship once again, convincingly defeating the Robert Morris Colonials by a score of 7–4, to advance to the NCAA Division 1 tournament for the second consecutive season.[21] The team's playoff run ended in the first round of the east regional in Albany, New York by the first-ranked Quinnipiac Bobcats by a score of 4–0.[22] The 2016–2017 season was a down year for the Tigers as they flirted with the .500 mark within their conference and were unable to defeat any non-conference teams. They faced Niagara in the first round of the playoffs losing a close one 5–4 in game 1 but shutting them out 5–0 in game 2 setting the stage for the deciding game 3. They were unable to complete the comeback as the Purple Eagles ended the Tigers' season winning 4–1.
In the 2017–2018 season, the Tigers started the season with their first game at Blue Cross Arena for Brick City weekend against the number-14th-ranked Northeastern University. It was the first meeting between these two schools. RIT jumped out to a 3–0 lead only to see Northeastern comeback and tie it. The Tigers performed well during the first half of the season but slumped during the second half. The Tigers finished with an overall record of 14–18–2 and a 13–14–1 for 27 points within their conference. Junior Erik Brown set a new school record with 28 goals during the season (including exhibition games) and also led the entire Atlantic Hockey Conference. His 28 goals was also 2nd overall in Division I hockey. In the playoffs, the Tigers faced the Sacred Heart Pioneers. Both teams split the first two games with both games heading to overtime. The Tigers prevailed in Game 1 scoring quickly in overtime to take a 1–0 series lead. The Pioneers prevailed in Game 2 after tying the game late in the third and finally ending it during triple overtime (the longest game in program history). In the deciding game, the Pioneers jumped out to a 2–0 lead early in the first and held the fort the rest of the way to clinch the series concluding the Tigers' season.
RIT men's hockey in action against Robert Morris University at the Gene Polisseni Center in 2019
The Tigers finished the 2018–2019 with a record (17–17–4) and played the Arizona State Sun Devils for the first time. Despite the Sun Devils recently moving into Division 1, the Tigers got swept on home ice. In the playoffs, they faced Sacred Heart. They split the first two games with lopsided results (9–4 loss in Game 1 and a 7–3 win in Game 2) before edging them out in Game 3 with a 3–1 victory. The Tigers would then face the Niagara Purple Eagles in the next round. The game was intense with the goalies stealing the show. After regulation ended with no goals the game was decided in overtime where Niagara scored 7:03 into extra time to win 1–0.
The 2019–2020 season saw the Tigers play in the Icebreaker tournament in Ohio with a pair of games against Coach Wayne Wilson's and Associate Head Coach Brian Hills' Alma mater, the Bowling Green State Falcons as well as the Ohio State University Buckeyes. RIT prevailed against the Falcons in overtime (3–2) but fell to the Buckeyes (3–1). The Tigers had their ups and downs during the season but play was disrupted throughout the league when the COVID-19 pandemic cancelled the playoffs.
During the off-season, the school was debating whether or not to hold a season for the 2020–2021 season. On November 10, 2020, the school decided to cancel the season due to the pandemic. This prompted the team to issue a statement on Twitter showing an inconsistency (RIT plans to have a 12% increase in in-person learning next semester) as well as the fact that the season was to start in between semesters creating a comfortable bubble. Seven days later, the school reconsidered and declared that the season was set to move forward. The season got underway November 27 against Clarkson with RIT coming out victorious 8–5 in front of zero fans. This season also marked the debut of the Long Island University Sharks which RIT hosted and split the series. RIT finished the abridged season with a record of 9–9–2 and made an early exit from the playoffs getting swept by Canisius.
The Tigers finished 2021–22 season in fourth place in the AHA, followed by a 2–1 series victory in the quarterfinals at home against Sacred Heart. The Tigers lost their semifinals matchup against Air Force in Utica.[23]
The 2022–23 season saw the Tigers win their first Atlantic Hockey Association Regular season Championship since the 2010–11 season. The Tigers began the year strong, with highlights including their 8–5 defeat of Union during the Brick City Homecoming Game (also the team's first victory over the Dutchmen), and an 8-game win streak. As a result of their strong play, the Tigers found themselves nationally ranked in both the USCHO Poll and the USA Today Hockey Poll (peaking at No. 18 in both). However, the end of the regular season saw the Tigers slide, dropping out of the USCHO and USA Today rankings and winning only 4 of their final 9 contests. Despite this, the Tigers finished with a record of 22–11–1 (18–7–1 in conference play), their most wins since their 2009–10 season, and clinched the first seed in the Atlantic Hockey playoffs. The Tigers swept the eighth seed Mercyhurst Lakers in the Atlantic Hockey Quarterfinals best-of-three series, but were upset in the Semifinals by the seventh seed Holy Cross Crusaders, losing that series 2–1.[24] Four of the six members of the season's Atlantic Hockey's All-Conference First Team were RIT Tigers; forward Carter Wilke, defensemen Gianfranco Cassaro and Aiden Hansen-Bukata, and goaltender Tommy Scarfone.[25]
RIT celebrates a playoff series victory in 2023
The Tigers opened their 2023–24 season with a loss at St. Lawrence, but rebounded with a 3–0 win over Notre Dame in the Brick City Homecoming Game a week later, and opened Atlantic Hockey play with a 4–2 home victory over Sacred Heart.[26] Junior goaltender Tommy Scarfone was named the Atlantic Hockey Goaltender of the Month for the month of October,[27] as RIT earned a spot in the USCHO rankings at No. 20 after the first weekend of November.[28] The Tigers would remain in the rankings, moving as high as #18 as they entered the mid-season break.[29] Returning from the break, RIT participated in the Dartmouth Ledyard Classic tournament hosted by Dartmouth University, splitting the two games they played. With a 3–0 victory against Bentley on January 26, Scarfone earned his 44th win for the Tigers, becoming the leader in goaltender wins for RIT since the program moved up to Division I.[30] The Tigers clinched a first round bye in the Atlantic Hockey Tournament after beating Air Force on February 16, and first place in the AHA season following a defeat of second place Holy Cross by Bentley on February 22.[31] This regular season championship was the Tigers' second in a row and RIT's sixth since joining the conference. RIT proceeded to sweep both the conference quarterfinals against Robert Morris and semifinals against Niagara, and subsequently defeated AIC 5–2 in the Atlantic Hockey Championship Game to earn their first NCAA tournament appearance since 2016.[32] As with the previous season, four Tigers were named to the AHA All-Conference First Team: Wilkie, Cassaro, and Scarfone each for the second consecutive season, in addition to forward Cody Laskosky.[33] Scarfone and head coach Wayne Wilson were named as the conference's goaltender and coach of the year, respectively.[34]
Shortly after the 2023–24 season, the Association merged with the women-only College Hockey America (CHA), forming Atlantic Hockey America. All members of both the Association and CHA were included in the merger.[35]
Wayne Wilson announced his retirement on April 9, 2025.[36] Alumnus Matt Thomas was announced as the new head coach the next day.[37]
Author and internet personality Hank Green was a special guest for the 2023 Homecoming Game, participating in the ceremonial puck drop with RIT president David Munson
The Brick City Homecoming game is RIT's annual homecoming game that takes place at the Blue Cross Arena in downtown Rochester. The game is part of Brick City Homecoming and Family Weekend, and typically draws at or near a sellout crowd.
GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; SV% = Save percentage; GAA = Goals against average
The following is a list of people associated with the RIT men's ice hockey program who were elected into the RIT Tigers Hall of Fame (induction date in parentheses).[41]
↑ RIT was in both the NYCHL and ECAC 2 / ECAC West from 1981 to 1986.
References
Venniro, Joe; Jaynes, Steve (2008). 2008–09 Men's Ice Hockey Media Guide(PDF). Rochester, New York: RIT Sports Information Office and University News. Retrieved May 9, 2009.
"School Colors"(PDF). Identity Manual. RIT. p.6. Archived from the original(PDF) on October 15, 2011. Retrieved September 27, 2010.: In the 2000s, school colors changed from Orange and Burnt Umber to Orange and Brown.
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